Mall Shop Cassette Dripped Late: Hose Loose at the Pump

A mall shop cassette drips late in the trading day. Whether the pump is at fault or delivering somewhere it should not.

By Team Snowflake | Updated 24 Aug 2026

How this presents

Water arriving on the floor of a retail space from the ceiling above, with the pump audibly running whenever the pan fills. It starts and stops exactly as it should. The water keeps coming down regardless of that.

Setup: Mitsubishi Electric Cassette7-9 yearsRetailJurong East
Misread as: A pump at fault on ceiling equipment, with the disruption of getting up there to replace it.
Check first: Where the discharge actually terminates, traced from the pump outlet

What else produces this

A pump that starts on cue and runs to completion has passed the only test most people apply. That is why this fault survives a visit. The remaining question is where the water goes once it leaves the outlet, and that is answered by following the hose rather than by testing the pump again. A hose that has come away delivers into the ceiling void, so every cycle makes the problem worse rather than better.

A pump starting and stopping correctly with the water level removes the pump and its switch from the search.
Water still arriving below despite a working pump places the fault after the outlet.
A discharge hose partly pulled off the outlet spigot delivers into the void instead of the drain.
Years of running vibration explain how a push-fit connection worked itself loose without anyone touching it.

Why it happens

A small pump vibrates every time it runs, and a push-fit hose on its outlet takes that vibration continuously. Over enough cycles the hose creeps off the spigot until it is barely engaged, and once it parts the pump discharges into the ceiling. Nothing has failed and every component still works. The system has simply come apart at the one joint nobody looks at.

What resolution involves

The hose is reseated and secured properly, which ends the problem completely for very little work. The habit is what matters more. On any pumped drain, follow the hose from the outlet to where it terminates and confirm the connection at both ends. Testing the pump proves the pump, and this fault lives entirely outside it.

How to tell it worked

Water tipped into the pan and then traced at the far end, confirming it arrives where it should. A pump heard running is not evidence that any water reached the drain.

Before you approve a quote

A working pump proves nothing about the outlet

A pump can start, run and stop correctly while emptying straight into the ceiling.
Push-fit connections creep off under vibration. The outlet joint is the one nobody inspects.
Trace the hose to where it ends and confirm both connections. Hearing the pump is not the test.

Questions this case answers

Shop cassette only drips late in the day: why not in the morning?

No. A pump only pushes into whatever is connected to it, so it can start on cue, run properly and stop correctly while delivering the water into the ceiling. Hearing it run is not evidence that anything reached the drain.

Does a dripping cassette mean the tray has cracked?

Tip water into the pan and go to the far end of the run, then confirm the water arrives there. Checking both connections along the way takes moments and covers the whole path.

Can a short test run miss a drainage leak?

Vibration. A small pump shakes each time it runs, and a push-fit hose creeps off its spigot over thousands of cycles until it is barely engaged. No part needs to be defective for that to occur.

What should be checked after any work inside the ceiling void?

Reseating it properly and securing the connection, which is a small job. Where the spigot or the hose end has been damaged by the movement, replacing the hose while everything is open is worth doing too.

Ready to get started?

Tell us what’s going on. Symptoms, setup, photos, anything we should know. We’ll assess and come back with the right next step.

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